# NTSB NYC08CA147: Rans S12XL, N166LS, Wauchula, FL, March 21, 2008 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Data collection · Final report - Date: March 21, 2008, 13:15 local (17:15 UTC) - Place: Wauchula, FL - Coordinates: 27.508888, -81.874725 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=27.5089&lon=-81.8747&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Enroute](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/400) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Defining event: [Enroute-cruise: Loss of engine power (total)](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/341) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report May 28, 2008 - Report: Approved by Office Director - Parties: FAA/FSDO - NTSB case key (mKey): 67711 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=NYC08CA147 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/67711/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/NYC08CA147 ## Probable cause The malfunction of the fuel line, which resulted in a loss of engine power due to fuel starvation. ## Findings NTSB's coded findings; those marked are part of the probable cause. - [Fuel system](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01022800): Aircraft › Aircraft systems · Damaged/degraded (probable cause); cases with it: [Rans S12XL, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01022800/cases.md?model=05901OT), [All aircraft, 181 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01022800/cases.md) - [Fluids: fuel](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01071010): Aircraft › Fluids/misc hardware · Fluid level; cases with it: [Rans S12XL, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01071010/cases.md?model=05901OT), [All aircraft, 1,695 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01071010/cases.md) - [Runway/land/takeoff/taxi surface](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/03023000): Environmental issues › Physical environment · Not specified; cases with it: [Rans S12XL, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/03023000/cases.md?model=05901OT), [All aircraft, 253 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/03023000/cases.md) ## Sequence of events The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event best describes what happened. - [Enroute-cruise: Loss of engine power (total)](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/341) (defining event); cases with it: [Rans S12XL, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/341/sequence.md?model=05901OT), [All aircraft, 3,820 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/341/sequence.md) - [Landing: Landing gear collapse](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/094); cases with it: [Rans S12XL, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/094/sequence.md?model=05901OT), [All aircraft, 1,787 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/094/sequence.md) ## Analysis The amateur-built Rans S12XL's engine lost power while making an overhead approach to the destination airport. The pilot then performed an emergency landing in the grass to the west of the single runway, and during the landing roll the left main gear "went into a hole and collapsed." During the collapse, the structural tubing of the fuselage was damaged. Examination of the fuel system revealed that the fuel supply line to the fuel pump was cracked, resulting in fuel starvation to the engine. ## Factual narrative According to the pilot of an amateur-built Rans S12XL, the airplane's engine lost power while making an overhead approach to the destination airport. The pilot then performed an emergency landing in the grass to the west of the single runway, and during the landing roll the left main gear "went into a hole and collapsed." During the collapse, the structural tubing of the fuselage was damaged. Examination of the fuel system by a Federal Aviation Administration inspector revealed that the fuel supply line to the fuel pump was cracked, resulting in fuel starvation to the engine. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N166LS](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N166LS), registered now, S/N 02020942, built 2005 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Rans, Inc. S12XL - Registry model: [Rans S12XL](https://openairdocs.org/model/rans-s12xl) (registry code 0590220) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Rotax 582SER](https://openairdocs.org/engine/rotax-582ser) (registry code 55556, 2 cycle) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 02020942 - Engines: Rotax 582 65 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Operator: Jay B. Kurtz - Registered owner: Robert Craig McGarvey Sr. - Airworthiness certificate: Special, Special light-sport (Special); Special, Experimental (Special) - Departed: X49, Mulberry, FL - Destination: CHN, Wauchula, FL - Airport: CHN, Wachula Municipal Airport ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 69; injuries: none; private; airplane ratings: single-engine land; medical: class 3; flight hours: 2,000 total, 1,300 in this make and model, 1,900 as pilot in command, 100 in the last 90 days, 10 in the last 30 days ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 110° at 10 knots - Visibility: 15 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: 5,900 ft broken - Temperature: 77 °F, dew point 63 °F - Altimeter: 30.12 inHg - Observed at: LAL, 29 nm away ## FAA reports on this event (1) The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 20080321836739A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20080321836739A), Mar 21, 2008: Amtr RANSS12XL, Wauchula, FL, Substantial damage. (-23) On March 21, 2008, at 1315 EDT, a rans S12XL, N166LS, registered to a [privacy data omitted] landed in a grass area at Wauchula airport. Visual… From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.